Celtic fans have stumped up big money for season tickets and strips so now it's time for board to splash the cash - Chris Sutton

Celtic fans have stumped up big money for season tickets and strips so now it's time for board to splash the cash – Chris Sutton

Record Sport's Chris Sutton believes supporters are right to be concerned over the lack of big business at his old club

Celtic fans are eyeing a box office summer

It might have looked like a morale-boosting pre-season victory for Celtic.

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But seeing off Sporting Lisbon the other night might have actually been the worst possible result for Brendan Rodgers.

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His side performed pretty well but it didn’t tell us anything we didn’t really know.

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The performance of Benjamin Nygren was perhaps the one revelation but we know Callum McGregor is a player, we are well aware of what Reo Hatate can do and how dangerous Daizan Maeda can be, or that Adam Idah needs to be a bit sharper in front of goal at times.

But results like that one shouldn’t kid anyone on. Celtic are still way short of where they need to be in terms of the squad.

And we can’t keep saying the same thing every week with the new season and the Champions League qualifier inching ever closer.

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Rodgers needs reinforcements and his comments about incoming Shin Yamada won’t exactly put fans at ease, when it’s clear they are starting to get a bit frustrated at the last of serious movement in the transfer market.

The manager described the Japanese striker as a club signing and one he’ll assess when he gets in to see if he’s going to be one to develop for the future or one for the here and now.

I find all that stuff a bit bizarre. You don’t get this stuff elsewhere about club signings as opposed to manager signings.

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Rodgers is clearly being a bit cute. He will have had the final say on the deal but it looks like he’s agreed to take a look at a low risk cheap arrival while also creating a bit of distance if he doesn’t quite work out.

It’s a strange scenario. You can’t be over-critical of a transfer policy that has made the club fortunes over the last decade and more.

But it doesn’t seem like Celtic don’t half make things hard for themselves when it comes to transfers.

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There’s a good chance they will spend a decent amount of money this summer.

It’s more a question of when. How often are they in this position? Fans were climbing the walls last summer waiting for new arrivals and they eventually landed late in the window.

I think the needs are more pressing this time around though. Celtic need players in the door and with games under their belt before Europe.

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Rodgers knows it too. He admitted he’s still looking for new arrivals in the forward areas and it’s obvious why.

(Image: SNS Group )

Celtic have lost Nicolas Kuhn, Kyogo and Jota to injury, chuck in Matt O’Riley last summer and that’s a huge amount of goals that have gone from the team.

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Nygren looks like he might be able to chip in with a few but Celtic right now are in a precarious position.

They only have Maeda, James Forrest and Yang in the wide areas – and it’s not enough.

Forrest is 34-year-old and while he’s a proven performer, he’s had injury issues in recent seasons.

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Yang hasn’t done enough to suggest he’s capable of being a first team regular yet and there’s an awful lot on the shoulders of Maeda.

God forbid if he was to get injured – Celtic would be right up against it.

Fans I speak to are constantly asking me the same thing – what’s going on with the signings?

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There’s a fair few of them who are starting to get annoyed about it. It’s understandable.

The Scottish Cup Final disappointment is still fresh in the memory and this dithering over transfers is putting them in a bad mood as the season approaches.

You only need to look at the ticket sales for the Newcastle United game on Saturday/today.

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There’s not exactly a stampede as they might not be too keen to stump up after already shelling out for season tickets and the latest new kits – which don’t come cheap.

Supporters are already facing tough times right now and they might be picking and choosing when and where they spend their money.

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There might be a late rush just because they want to watch their team – even if there aren't too many new faces in it yet.

They’ll feel they have spent their money supporting the side. Now It’s time for the club to use it.

As friendly games go, this should also be a good test. You have to take into account it’s still a pre-season game and it doesn’t really matter.

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But there is always a bit of extra incentive when Celtic are playing teams from England.

I’m sure Eddie Howe will get a nice welcome at Parkhead for starters, while his team will be a significant test and a good barometer of where the clubs are.

I always enjoyed playing English teams at Celtic. It was probably the sense they looked down on Scottish football, so we’d enjoy nothing more than going down to the likes of Fulham and QPR and battering them, before jetting out somewhere like America and pitting ourselves against the top EPL teams.

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Times have changed and the clubs like Newcastle now have astronomical budgets and this is a Champions League quality team.

I’m sure there will be a few in that Celtic dressing room who’d love to get one over them though, guys like Kieran Tierney and Callum McGregor who know there is a bit of pride at stake as well as the usual fitness benefits.

It’ll be a good workout and you wouldn’t be surprised if Celtic did manage to get a result.

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But – like Sporting Lisbon – would that actually be a good thing?

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